1. Field of the Invention
This is invention relates to the field of human computer interfacing and more particularly but not exclusively to intelligent systems and their ability to process botch voice and data inputs.
2. Discussion of Prior Art
State of the art applications and database interrogation methods usually comprise the use of trained operators utilizing menu driven interface systems to retrieve the required data or information on demand. Such systems typically require the operator to have knowledge of the access requirements of a number of databases and in most cases further constrains the operator to using and having access to only one such database at a time.
In areas such as Telephone Call Centres, typically used by companies for customer query and complaint processing, trained operators are required to ask predetermined questions of the callers to enable them to then manually access whichever particular database is required, in order to identify such features as part numbers, makes and/or models for use in processing the query or complaint. For example, a typical call center operator may be required to respond to customer requests for information over a range of differing company products, namely telephones, washing machines, televisions, audio equipment etc. The operator would therefore have to quickly establish which particular type of product the caller is referring to following by the make, model number, serial number and possibly date of purchase, these types of information most probably being stored on more than one database. The requirement to switch between a range of databases using a keyboard and/or mouse and conduct a conversation using a predetermined set of closely worded questions can be an arduous task for a call center operator and our invention would significantly reduce the operator work load and call time per transaction.
Numerous other applications where access to a range of databases is required which currently use manual operator access may include logistics and support, physical security and tasks such as those performed by ships"" captains when steering vessels, pilots and airborne engineers.
European Patent Application No. 92119615.0 discloses a speech dialogue system for facilitating human-computer interaction. This speech dialogue based invention, although having a human-computer interaction role, does not perform the function of assisting a human operator in his or her tasks but is designed to replace a human operator. The invention allows a human to speak to a machine, and through a speech recognition system a response to input speech is formulated and an output made according to the understood semantic content of the input speech. The understanding of a semantic content of an input speech from the user is made by detecting keywords in the input speed with the keywords in the input speed being limited in advance in accordance with the needs of the overall system.
The speech dialogue system therefore assists a customer by replacing a human operator and not by supporting an operator throughout a series of transactions. Our invention utilizes a human computer interface system and an intelligence system which enables real time analysis of operator and/or customer inputs (keyboard, mouse, speech etc.) and provides a reasoning facility designed specifically to support an operator by navigating a xe2x80x9crichxe2x80x9d data domain (one or more databases) in response to contextual keywords and phrases provided by a automatic speech recognition system.
Our invention provides apparatus and a method of providing real-time context intelligence of automatically recognized key words/phrases, for use in hands free searches of simple and more complex databases. Additionally it provides a flexible and powerful approach to improving current Call Centre Software support by integrating a fully functional Human Computer Interface (HCI)System with an Intelligent system and allowing these to be further integrated with an existing software Application.
Accordingly there is provided a human-computer interface system, comprising user interface and display means for both inputting speech and data and outputting visual and speech responses, human-computer interface means for recognition of a user input and subsequent passing of recognized inputs to an intelligence systems means, and for supplying output signals to the user interface and display means, intelligence system means for correlating the recognized user input with the context of the operation being performed by the user, based on an intelligent assessment of the context of the user operation, and based on such assessment, sending output signals to the user interface and display means which may comprise information or data retrieved from an applications or database.
According to another aspect of the invention there is provided a method a method of providing real time context intelligence in relation to automatically recognized input signals whereby information and/or data inputted from a user interface and display means is recognized by a human-computer interface means such that it can be passed to an intelligence system means whereby the recognized user input data and information is correlated with the context of the operation being performed by the user, and based on an intelligent assessment of the context of the user operation, output signals are sent back to the user interface and display means, said output signals capable of comprising information or data retrieved from applications or database.